" 'Letting go' means letting go of not only distressing and unpleasant things, but also every kind of fixed idea. We carry around so many fixed ideas such as 'you' and 'I,' 'good' and 'bad.' You made all of these fixed ideas, and as long as you cling to them, it's impossible for you to become one with your true nature.
"The worst prison in the world is the prison of thought. The most difficult wall in the world to overcome is the wall of fixed ideas. From a certain perspective, spiritual practice means freeing yourself from such prisons of thought. Thus, if you keep thinking 'I'm just an unenlightened being,' then because of that thought you cannot play any role other than that of an unenlightened being. Be very aware of the great difference a single thought can make.
"Don't make a big deal about other people's level of spiritual development. If you discriminate between higher and lower, you will not be able to make progress in your own practice. Even though you truly know, do not give rise to the thought that you know. Even though you may be higher, do not think that you are higher. Even though someone else may be ignorant, you should not let yourself be caught by thoughts like that.
"From the present viewpoint, something may clearly seem right or wrong. However, from the combined viewpoint of past, present, and future, things cannot so easily be called right or wrong.
"You can roll a barrel only when you are outside of the barrel. When you are caught by fixed ideas, it is as if you are trapped inside of a barrel; so you cannot freely use your mind. If you escape from your fixed ideas, you will see that all of the thoughts and perspectives that you considered so precious are utterly ridiculous. Mind is formless and can freely go anywhere in the universe, so if you give rise to thoughts in a wise and all embracing manner, you can escape from the barrel, from bondage, and from the prison that has no bars. How can you freely use your mind unless you first step outside of your own fixed ideas?
"Fixed ideas are like a wisp of cloud or smoke, but nonetheless people find themselves blocked or captured by these. You would laugh if you saw someone trapped by a cloud, or if someone claimed that they were imprisoned by the air. But, in fact, people are endlessly being trapped by things no more substantial than air or clouds. They make a wall with their mind, and then it imprisons them. Inherently, there is no wall or anything to trip over. These things are mirages they've created from the thoughts they gave rise to.
"Do not insist upon your own fixed ideas. Your persistence is your own narrow mind. If your mind is broad, it can easily embrace the entire world. However, if your mind is narrow, even a needle cannot enter. You have to keep letting go of your stubbornness, and always be deeply respectful of all life and things. This is returning to and relying upon the Buddha-Dharma. This is also how to become a free person. Always be humble. Be humble. The fragrance of your broad and generous mind will warm other's hearts."
